Upholstery fastener construction



Aug. 25, 1953 H. M. QUAKENBUSH 2,549,898

UPHOLSTERY FASTENER CONSTRUCTION Filed Aug. 4, 1951 Patented Aug. 25, 1953 2,649,898 l UPHOLSTERY FASTENEE CONSTRUCTION Howard M. Quakenbush, Evansville, Ind., as-

signor to National Furniture Manufacturing Company, Inc., Evansville, Ind., a corporation Application August 4, 1951, Serial No. 240,331

5 Claims. (C1. 155-180) I This invention relates to an upholstery fastener construction for use in the furniture field. More particularly it pertains to the combination of a spring steel or spring wire clip with a specially constructed steel frame for furniture and-.theI like. E f 1 It is the primaryobject of this invention to provide improved means for securely mounting and holding` furniture covers Aand the llike in place. Heretofore various means' have -been employed to accomplish the same end. In the past it has been necessary to use a wooden trimming Tail or the like to which the upholstery was tacked or otherwise secured. 'Another manner of accomplishing the same end was through the use ofsrrated .strips or lthe .like Eachof these various means has 'been 'attended by disadvantages, including increased expense and workmanship. In the present invention on the other hand, the steel frame common in some furniture today is made use of in combination with a spring steel or spring wire clip to securely fasten the upholstery in place. The invention thus eliminates a great deal of the expense which characterizes the other fastening means while at the same time it provides a most effective upholstery securing construction.

It is a further object of the present invention to provide an upholstery fastening device which is simple in construction, dependable in operation and efficient in reducing the amount of labor and the time required for securing the upholstery to the furniture.

The full nature of the invention will be understood from the accompanying drawings and the following description and claims:

In the drawings,

Fig. 1 is a vertical section view with parts broken away, of a seat frame of an article of furniture.

Fig. 2 is an enlarged perspective view of a section of steel frame of an article of furniture with the fastening clip mounted thereon.

Fig. 3 is an enlarged perspective View of the spring steel or spring wire clip.

In the drawings, I0 represents a portion of the steel frame of an article of furniture, the frame being formed preferably of angle iron, as shown. For purposes of illustration only, foam rubber cushion II having air spaces I2 is shown mounted on a wooden member or platform I3 carried by the steel frame. For purposes of illustrating another construction there is shown in the right-hand side of Fig. 1 a conventional coil spring I4 suitably secured at I5 to said platform.

' alignment and register one with the other,

Conventional stuffing or padding I5 envelops the Enveloping theV padding or the foam rubber, as the case may be, is the upholstery cover I8. As is well known, it is necessary in order that it may present an attractive appearance, that the cover be securely anchored. In order to accomplish this, prongs or lances I9 are struckout of the depending leg 20 of the angle iron at spaced intervals, as shown. The lances are preferably exposed on the inner side of the depending legs.

The upholstery or cover is placed about the cushion of the article of furniture and is brought downwardly as shown in Fig. l, about the depending leg of the angle iron. The lower extremity of the cover is then brought upwardly adjacent the inner face of the depending leg so that it envelops the lances I9 and extends slightlly thereabove. In order to anchor the cover securely the spring steel or spring wire clip 2| is used. This clip is substantially of U-shape, having the stamped-out apertures 22 which are in The apertures are formed to a size which is slightly greater than the area of the lances or prongs I9. The free ends of the clips are flared outwardly at 23 to facilitate straddling the clip over the depending leg of the angle iron. It is also desirable that the portion of the clip remote from the free ends be rounded as at 24 to present a smooth non-cutting surface.

Once the upholstering or cover has been draped about the cushion of the article of furniture and about the depending leg of the angle iron the clips are then readily and easily clamped about the depending leg and about the lances. At such time the upholstering will be held securely in place. Furthermore, by reason of the construction the clips will be retained in place. This is true for the reason that the upper portion of the lance will extend through the aperture and in a plane therebeyond. It thus is impossible for the clip to be removed without manual effort being exerted. In addition, the clip will not be capable of lateral movement for the reason that the walls defining the aperture will be stopped by the lance.

By reason of the outwardly iiared portions of the clip it is clear that when it is desired to remove the clip it is possible to insert an instrument between the flared portion and the fabric and then exert a force downwardly on the outer arm of the clip so as to spring it and then efect its removal from embracing engagement with the depending leg and lance.

While the invention has been illustrated and described in detail in the drawings and foregoing description, the same is to be considered as illustrative and not restrictive in character.

The invention claimed is:

1. In .an article .of .furniture .or the like `including an angle iron frame; an upholstery fastening construction comprising a plurality of angularly disposed projections formed on one face of the depending leg of said angle iron, and a spring clip straddling said depending `leg,-enveloping'said projections and anchoring upholstery thereto, said clip having an aperture formed therethrough of a size slightly ,greater `than the area of said projections.

2. In an article of furniture `orthe"likeincluding an angle iron frame; an upholstery fastening construction comprising a plurality of spaced angularly disposed lances 'formed on the r`depending leg of lsaid an'gleiron, said lances lbeing Kpartially struck o ut portions of said depending leg,

and a spring clip straddling vsaid depending leg, enveloping said lances and anchoring upholstery thereto, said clip 'having an aperture formed therethrough -of a :Size slightly greater 'than the area of lsaid lances.

3. 'In an article of 'furniture or the like including -an-a-ngle iron frame.; an upholstery fastening construct-ion comprising a plurality of spaced angularly `disposed'lances formed on the depending leg of said angle iron, said lances being partially struck out portions of said depending leg and being exposed on the inner face thereof, and a vspring clip straddling said depending leg, `enveloping `,said lances and anchoring upholstery thereto, said clip having an aperture formed therethrough of a size slightly Agreater Athan the area of saidzprong.

4. In an article of furniture or the like including an angle iron frame; an upholstery fastening construction comprising a plurality of projections extending upwardly and outwardly on the inner depending face of said angle iron, and a spring clip straddling the depending leg of said angle iron, enveloping said projection and anchoring upholstery thereto, said clip being substantially "U-shaped and having a pair of apertures formed therethrough of a size slightly greater than the rarea of said projection,

5. In an article of furniture or the like including van angle ironlframe; an upholstery fastening construction comprising a plurality of lances extending `upwardly .and outwardly on the inner Ydepending vface -o'f Asaid angle irony said lances being partially struck out portions of the depend- `:infgfleg of -said iron, and a substantially U-shaped spring -vclip straddling said leg, enveloping said lances and anchoring .upholstery thereto, said clip having an aperture formed therethrough of a size slightly greater "than Ithe area-of saidla-nces and having vits free lends aredoutwa'rdly.

HGWARD MJQUAKENBUSH.

References Cited in the le of this pilaten't UNITED lSTATES PATENTS Number Name Bate .1,199,247 DArcy Sept. 26, 191,6 1,389,938 Fitzgerald Feb. J17, :192D 1,655,534 .-DArcy ,10, .1928 1,729,377 Freeman Sept. ,24g 19,29

FOREIGN PATENTS Number 'Country Date .624,897 Great 'Britain .June 17,1949 

